Open Source infighting over the GPLv3 just turned nastier - in a post on the Linux kernel mailing list, Linus Torvalds effectively called the authors of the GPLv3 'hypocritical morons'. InformationWeek has reported on the issue: "Linux creator Linus Torvalds said the authors of a new software license expected to be used by thousands of open source programmers are a bunch of hypocrites and likened them to religious fanatics - the latest sign of a growing schism in the open source community between business-minded developers like Torvalds and free software purists."
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
Member since:2006-01-02
I agree with your perspective that the author is biased, but I think you have the favored sides flipped. A "purist" is usually looked down upon, in my parlance, whereas a business-minded person is more practical and productive.
Whatever... I personally like Linus' point of view better because it seems more intellectually honest and it's ultimately what will get Linux farther as an engineering system. TiVO could just as easily move to WinCE and get all the benefits of Linux if the cost of dealing with the GPLv3 is too high. WinCE is an shared-source OS for those people who choose to license it, so it's not like they'll lose much from an engineering perspective... maybe a buck or so per unit for price, but that could be less than the cost of litigating with these jackasses.
Member since:2006-03-12
"I agree with your perspective that the author is biased, but I think you have the favored sides flipped. A "purist" is usually looked down upon, in my parlance, whereas a business-minded person is more practical and productive.
Whatever... I personally like Linus' point of view better because it seems more intellectually honest and it's ultimately what will get Linux farther as an engineering system. TiVO could just as easily move to WinCE and get all the benefits of Linux if the cost of dealing with the GPLv3 is too high. WinCE is an shared-source OS for those people who choose to license it, so it's not like they'll lose much from an engineering perspective... maybe a buck or so per unit for price, but that could be less than the cost of litigating with these jackasses."
Its always nice to see Vista Advocates pop by in in GPL3 thread to promote Linus' argument against GNU adoption.
I'm pretty certain, that its Microsoft not FSF threatening companies using Linux. Which the FSF unlike Linus is actually addressing.
I'd love you to show me these *costs*
Member since:
2007-02-22
Reading Linus's post, I don't see quite what the article is getting at. He did argue for the rights of the enduser, unusual from someone at his level of power, but he hardly 'slammed executives of the Free Software Foundation.'
Of course, we can tell what side the author is trying to promote by looking at the last sentence of his first paragraph. He titled the two sides "business-minded developers" and "free software purists." The name he gives the former completely ignores the fact that that position isn't doing it for the sake of a business. The name he gives the latter -- using the words 'free' and 'purist' -- implies that that position is the 'good' and 'pure' position in the argument.
EDIT: Clarity.
Edited 2007-07-15 16:32